1. Field of the Disclosure
The disclosure relates generally to apparatus and methods for forming boreholes and, specifically, for controlling a depth of cut when drilling.
2. Description of the Related Art
To form a wellbore or borehole in a formation, a drilling assembly (also referred to as the “bottom hole assembly” or the “BHA”) carrying a drill bit at its bottom end is conveyed downhole. The wellbore may be used to store fluids in the formation or obtain fluids from the formation, such as hydrocarbons. The BHA typically includes devices and sensors that provide information relating to a variety of parameters relating to the drilling operations (“drilling parameters”), behavior of the BHA (“BHA parameters”) and parameters relating to the formation surrounding the wellbore (“formation parameters”). A drill bit is typically attached to the bottom end of the BHA. The drill bit is rotated by rotating the drill string and/or by a drilling motor (also referred to as a “mud motor”) in the BHA in order to disintegrate the rock formation to drill the wellbore. As drilling progresses from a soft formation, such as shale, to a hard formation, such as sand, the rate of penetration (ROP) of the drill bit changes, thereby causing wear and tear on portions of the drill bit. In an example, polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) cutters may be subject to wear and tear when cutting hard formation regions, thereby requiring servicing or replacement of the drill bit. Replacement of the drill bit may be time and cost intensive, as the drill string is pulled from the borehole to remove the bit.